Q1. How much DME® coconut oil can a single DME® unit produce in a day? top

A DME® unit can produce up to 50 litres per day. This is with skilled staff where an average 4 to 5 operators are required working There are people who have produced more than this with less staff but they are extra good.

For detailed answers to this question relevant to your own location, use our Site Calculator and see how economic a business would be before you start

Average roll off times of as low as 8 minutes are achievable and production rates of 6+litres per hour. We have seen two people produce 50L in 4 days without rushing around too much.

There are many markets available for your coconut oil. DME® high-quality virgin oil is becoming sought after worldwide as a medicinal health oil, cooking oil, soap oil, baby and massage oil and biofuel.

However a word of warning is that local stable markets should be the source of your bread and butter income, export markets are volatile and risky with fluctuating exchange rates, rising freight costs and strong competition as other DME® operators have found. Export may be a good place for your excess oil but you should establish you local markets first. Value adding to the primary product can greatly increase your profits particularly on local markets.

A stainless steel top can improve the Free Fatty acid levels in production by as much as 10x. Stainless steel qualifies for Organic certification as does mild steel but galvanised tops do not.

Stainless steel tops don't rust when the unit is not being used and they are much easier to keep clean than iron tops. If you are not worried about Organic certification then 2mm galvanised tops are OK.

The answer to this question is a matter of economics. You need to look at the going price for cooking oil and diesel and kerosene fuel in your area. If cooking oil sells for $4 a litre and diesel can be purchased for $1 a litre then you won't be able to sell you biofuel for more than one $1 per litre. However in areas where the price of diesel is greater than cooking oil then biofuel is a realistic market. Coconut oil is an excellent diesel fuel substitute and you may need to use it yourself when the roads or transport is cut off in the rainy season but remember diesels require very clean fuel well settled fuels with low free fatty acid levels. See our biofuel page

For the shed typical shed building materials such as roofing, timber and cement foundations. There are specific dryer materials that we can supply. The dryer is often custom made to suit different available materials in different parts of the world. We can help advise you on the best option for your specific circumstances.

Certified Organic Virgin Coconut Oil is very popular in the Western Nations for medicinal and heath products. Many customers now specifically request organic certification. However there is huge local market on your doorstep that does not require organic certification by supplying your countries needs in cooking oil, soap (no soap oil ever needs to be certified organic), massage oils, skin care oil etc. This is the best market for your bread and butter income and we reiterate the export business warning above